Genji carriage favor box

The family crest called 'kuruma' is said to have been around since ancient times. It appears in written records in the 'Nihon Shoki', but it seems to have been used by the emperor. By the Nara period, cargo carts were also made, and these were used by common people. They often appear in emakimono picture scrolls, and in the Heian period, many were ox-drawn gyusha carts used by nobility. The design of the kuruma mon family crest is based on these ox carts. The kuruma mon became established as a family crest at the beginning of the Kamakura period. Before the Edo period, the kuruma mon was also known as the Genji kuruma mon. The Genji carriage is the gosho carriage that appears frequently in 'The Tale of Genji Emaki'. There are other types of kuruma mon, such as water wheels and windmills, but the Genji carriage is by far the most common, to the point where the term 'kuruma mon' is almost synonymous with 'Genji carriage'. (From 'Family Crests: The More You Know' by Danwa Mototsugu)